Malaysian trainee teachers mathematical knowledge of fractions

Adnan Mazlini, Puteh Marzita, Zakaria Effandi,

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The study of trainee teachers’ knowledge of fractions is important because it is one of the topics that is difficult to learn and teach. Unfortunately, studies of teacher trainees’ fraction knowledge are limited. The main purpose of this study was to evaluate the Malaysian trainee teachers’ mathematical knowledge of fractions. This study included all four operations to provide a more comprehensive understanding of this knowledge. One hundred and eleven (111) trainee teachers enrolled in a 4-year teacher education program from two public universities in Malaysia participated in the Fraction Knowledge Test (FKT). Results showed that trainee teachers displayed better knowledge of fraction on procedure than on concept. Findings indicated that trainee teachers need more stimuli to construct their conceptual knowledge. Implications for teacher education are also discussed.

References

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